Pete Stark’s post-Congress gig: Atheistic role model

East Bay Rep. Pete Stark may have been voted out of Congress, but he’s already got at least one high-profile post-Congressional gig: He’ll be the featured speaker at the 2013 American Atheists National Convention next March in Austin, TX. About 1,500 folks expected.

Stark was the only “out” atheist in Congress, having stepped out of the godless closet in 2007. American Atheists president David Silverman just told us there are 20 other closeted atheists currently on The Hill, according to a tally taken by what Silverstein described as members of “The Movement” (i.e. the atheist movement) who have canvassed lawmakers.

But don’t look for any of the Congressional closet-dwellers to be outed. “No, no way,” Silverman said. “That’s not what we’re about.”

Many closeted atheist politicos fear that if they come out, they’ll be politically doomed. In that way, Silverman said Stark was a terrific role model, proving that one could be re-elected regardless of their religious or a-religious views. “The reason he wasn’t re-elected had nothing to do with his being an atheist.”

For, well, ever, Congress was the playpen of white Protestants. But the just-elected 113th Congress “includes the first Buddhist to serve in the Senate, the first Hindu to serve in either chamber and the first member of Congress to describe her religion as ‘none,’ continuing a gradual increase in religious diversity that mirrors trends in the country as a whole,” according to a recent Pew survey.

But that one “none” — newly-elected Rep. Kyrsten Sinema, D-AZ — kinda backed off her atheism the other day when CNN asked her point-blank: “Do you believe in God?”

Said Sinema, who was raised Mormon: “You know, I’m not a member of any faith community, and I think faith is a deeply personal issue that individuals should deal with in their private lives.”

And that’s the challenge with mixing atheism and politics. Atheists, by general nature, are not joiners. Not exactly an easy marriage with politics.

Atheists gather regularly — and often discuss political matters, as we noted here. And back in 2006, we wrote about how the atheistic Secular Coalition for America hired what was believed to be the first paid lobbyist for the unbelievers in the nation’s capital.

Most of their political wins in Washington, Silverstein said, are “defensive.” As in, they stop “Christianity from being inserted into many other parts of our lives.”

“One of the biggest wins we’ve seen lately is this last election season,” Silverstein said. “If you notice, there was a lot more talk about issues and a lot less about religion.”